SPOTLIGHT: Bird Strike Investigations

An American Airlines jet was forced to make an emergency landing at Mineta San Jose International Airport Friday morning because of a bird strike. The Dallas-bound plane, carrying 139 passengers aboard, returned to the airport shortly after take-off. There were no injuries.

The incident puts the spotlight on reports the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit has conducted in the past into the threat that birds pose to airplanes.  As Stephen Stock has reported, under federal law, all major airports can apply for a permit to shoot birds out of the sky when they pose threat to airplanes. It’s a little known program designed to keep travelers safe.

The program has come under scrutiny after our investigation uncovered that on average, nearly five birds a day are shot at Bay Area airports.

Below are links to our previous investigative reports on the subject:

Birds Shot Daily by Bay Area Airport Workers (May 23, 2013)

Peregrine Falcon Shot at SFO (Mar. 11, 2013)

 

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